Vocational Education and Training in Ireland

Helen Keogh

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Table of Contents Page

Q1. Overview 5

Q2. Education and training system in Ireland 6

Q3. The governance of the education and training system 7

Q4. Legislative framework 11

Q5. Entry to the VET system 12

Q6. Young learners 15

Q7. Other learners 18

Q8. Ensuring VET programmes are up to date 21

Q9. The institutional dimension 24

Q10. Workplace learning 26

Q11. Institution-workplace interface 27

Q12. Progression pathways 27

Q13. Impact 28

Q14. National supports systems for VET 30

Conclusion 31

Annexes

Annex 1 Labour market in Ireland 33

Annex 2 Structure of the national education and training system 37

Annex 3 Legislative framework for VET in Ireland 38

Annex 4 Measures to ensure the relevance of VET programmes 40

Annex 5 Main Providers of VET in Ireland 42

Annex 6 FAS Apprenticeship Code of Practice 44

Annex 7 National Framework of Qualifications 48

Annex 8 Proposed Governance in the VET System by end of 2012 49

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Technical and Vocational Education and Training in Ireland

Q1. Overview

Ireland is a small, open, trade-dependent economy, increasingly based on the hi-tech and internationally traded services sectors. Its openness is reflected in the international mobility of its labour and capital. Beginning in the early 1990’s, unprecedented economic growth saw the level of Irish real GDP double in size over the course of a little more than a decade. Many reasons have been advanced for these developments1. However, the onset of the global financial crisis and a near total collapse in property and construction markets in the country in the second half of 2007 saw economic activity drop sharply in 2008. This was followed by a crisis in a financial sector seriously overexposed to the property market. The subsequent downturn in the economy saw output fall for the first time since 1983 and living standards returning to the levels of a decade before. The parallel downturn in the economies of Ireland’s major trading partners reduced external demand for the country’s exports. The wider global downturn and the euro zone financial crisis compounded the pressures on the Irish economy.

Parallel to the growth in the economy the labour market in Ireland had grown to close on full employment in 2004. However, the rapidly contracting economy and the sectoral decline in areas such as construction and related professions, including engineering and architecture, reversed this trend and unemployment has risen dramatically from the low of 2004 (4.4%) to 14.24% in February 2012. The number of long-term unemployed increased by more than a third in the twelve months up to June, 2011. Approximately eight of every ten of those now on the Live Register (of the unemployed) for more than 12 months are aged over 25. The outlook is for no immediate amelioration of the situation, with the forecast unemployment for 2013 standing at 13.7%2 - see Annex 1 for detailed information on the labour force. See Annex 1 for information on the labour market in Ireland.

Parallel to the changes in the labour market Ireland also experienced significant demographic change in the period 2002 – 2012 arising from a steady inflow of migrant workers to meet the demands of an expanding labour market. Population figures for the period since 2002 show annual growth of around 2%. The first results of the Census 2011 show that Ireland’s population is growing strongly, primarily due to a high number of births. The preliminary total for the population enumerated on Census Night 10 April 2011 was 4,581,269 persons, compared with 4,239,848 persons in April 2006, an increase of 341,421 persons since 2006 or 8.1 per cent.3. Ireland continued to experience strong net inward migration for the first half of the latest intercensal period (2006 – 2011) followed by a switch to net outward migration over the second half resulting in an average annual inward migration rate of less than half that experienced in the period 2002-2006.

When it comes to the labour market skills stock of the population, the National Skills Strategy, launched in 2007, recommended that 500,000 individuals who do not have upper secondary (ISCED 3 and level 5 on National Framework of Qualifications) or equivalent qualifications move up one level

1 Factors include: EU membership; low corporation tax rate and a large multinational presence; a high proportion of the population of working age; increased participation in the labour market, especially by females; a reversal of the trend of emigration toward immigration; sustained investment in education and training; co-ordinated social partnership agreements and a more stable public finance position - see http://www.esri.ie/irish_economy/ 2 Economic and Social Research Institute (2012) Quarterly Economic Review Winter 2011/Spring 2012; CSO Ireland. 3 CSO Ireland (2011) http://www.cso.ie/en/media/csoie/census/documents/Press%20Release%20Census%202011%20Preliminary%20Results.pdf

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on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ). Specifically, there is a need to upskill 70,000 persons from NFQ levels 1 & 2 to level 3 (ISCED 2), 260,000 up to levels 4 & 5 (ISCED 3) and 170,000 to levels 6 to 10 (ISCED 4 and above). Thus, a total of 500,000 individuals must be advanced at least one level on the NFQ by 2020.

The above figures highlight the huge challenges faced by the Irish authorities in endeavouring to get people back to work. Table 1.4 provides an overview of the educational attainment of the labour force and illustrates the extent of the challenge faced by VET stakeholders in the context of the National Skills Strategy5 to 2020.

Table 1. Educational attainment of the labour force & the National Skills Strategy Target 2020

In November 2010, the Irish Government published a National Recovery plan, which aims to restore order to the public finances and to bring the budget deficit in line with the EU target of 3% of economic output by 2015. This involves a budget adjustment of €15 billion (through expenditure cuts and tax increases) over a four-year period. As part of recovery the Irish government received an €85bn international bailout in 2010. To date progress is being made in meeting budgetary targets, recapitalising the banks and introducing a job creation initiative. A GDP rate of 2.3% is forecast for 2013, up from a forecast of 0.9 for 2012 and growth will be driven by external demand as domestic demand will remain weak6.

Q2. Education and training system in Ireland

Schooling is compulsory in Ireland from age 6 to 16. Primary education enrols children from age 4 - 6 to age 12 or 13. Secondary (post-primary) education includes a ‘junior’ (lower secondary - ISCED 2) and a ‘senior’ (upper secondary - ISCED 3) cycle. The general junior cycle takes three years to 4 Colgan, A. (2010) Alignment of Education and Training Provision in the context of the upskilling targets of the National Skills Strategy. Forfás PowerPoint Presentation to the Further Education Section, Department of Education and Science, October 20105 Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (2007) Tomorrow’s Skills: Towards a National Skills Strategy. Dublin: Expert Group on Future Skills Needs. http://www.skillsstrategy.ie/6 Economic and Social Research Institute (2012) Quarterly Economic Review Winter 2011/Spring 2012

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Source: see footnote 4 below.

complete and leads to the Junior Certificate, achieved upon state examination typically at age 15 or 16. This is followed by an optional “Transition Year”, aiming to provide students with an opportunity to receive a wide range of educational inputs, soft skills and work experience. The senior cycle takes two years to complete and leads to the Leaving Certificate, achieved upon state examination, typically at age 17 or 18. Over 90% complete post-primary education7. The Irish education and training system is characterised by late vocational choice. A limited amount of VET takes place through the Leaving Certificate programme and out-of-school programmes for early school leavers. The vast majority of young learners make their first definite vocational choice on completion of the Leaving Certificate (ISCED 3) at age 17/18 when they proceed to higher education and training, or to non-tertiary further education and training (e.g. in a Post-Leaving Certificate course (ISCED 4), to an apprenticeship or other specific training (ISCED 5b)

Secondary/post-primary education is provided by a wide range of schools, viz., secondary, community, comprehensive, vocational schools and Gaelscoil8. While these schools are distinct in terms of ownership, governance arrangements and, in some cases, resources and student intake, with the passage of time and the expansion of the education system they all offer the same national curriculum leading to the same state examinations. Adult learning opportunities (general and VET, ISCED 2 – ISCED 6), available to those aged 16 and over, are provided on a full and part-time basis by a wide range of state, community, enterprise-based and commercial education and training providers.

Annex 2 provides a diagrammatic summary of the structure of the education and training system.

Q3. The governance of the education and training system9

The Minister for Education and Skills’ administrative agency is the Department of Education and Skills (DES). DES is the key government department with responsibility for the education and training system at all levels in Ireland. Other government departments (e.g. Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and Tourism), have responsibility for sectoral training. In January of 2012 the training role of FÁS, the National Training and Employment Authority, was transferred from the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to DES, a development welcomed by many stakeholders on the grounds that it has largely integrated responsibility for education and training under the same minister and has paved the way for greater integration of responsibilities and services at local and regional levels.

Many aspects of the administration of the Irish education system are centralised in the DES. An Education Bill in 1997 indicated the government's intention of establishing regional education councils as part of a move to decentralisation. However, a change of government in June of 1997 retained the centralised structure, which was enshrined in the Education Act of 1998. DES develops, implements and monitors education policy. In addition, DES inter alia sets the general regulations for the recognition of schools, exercises a controlling influence on school curriculum and assessment; establishes regulations for management, resourcing and staffing of schools, colleges and adult learning centres, and negotiates teachers' salary scales. Circular letters and ministerial statements are the regular means of interacting with schools and educational bodies. The Chief Inspector is the head of the Inspectorate supported by a Deputy Chief Inspector.

7 OECD (2010) Education at a Glance. Paris: OECD.8 All teaching and learning is done through the medium of the Irish language9 See Eurypedia - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview

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The only legally constituted local administration of post-primary education in Ireland is in the hand of the Vocational Education Committees (VECs)10 under the Vocational Education Act, 1930. The VECs are statutory local education committees comprised of members form the local authorities and representatives of staff, the local community, special interest groups and other local statutory bodies. VECs have responsibility for vocational and technical education in their areas. Their remit extends to the local vocational schools and colleges, including further education colleges offering post-secondary non-tertiary VET. A Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is the principal administrative official of each VEC with overseeing powers for the schools and colleges in each local VEC scheme.

While almost all primary schools and the majority of post-primary schools are locally owned and managed, publicly-funded, schools have relatively limited autonomy especially in relation to curriculum and the pedagogical methods employed. However, following the passing of the country’s first comprehensive legislation covering schools, the Education Act (1998), a legal context was created for the operation of school boards of management. Boards of management are supported through guidance documentation, advice and training and through the work of the school principal who typically acts as secretary to the board.

As a move towards the devolution of some responsibilities the conduct of the lower and upper secondary public examinations was devolved to the State Examinations Commission in 2003. Earlier (1968) the establishment of the Higher Education Authority (HEA) the statutory planning and policy development body for higher education and research in Ireland, had devolved responsibility for the university sector. HEA11 is now the funding authority for the universities, Institutes of Technology (since 2006) and a number of designated higher education institutions. The Institutes of Technology Act, 2006, began a structural reform process in the third-level education sector when it designated the Institutes of Technology (ITs) as institutions of higher education within the remit of the HEA. This has provided for greater autonomy for the Institutes and improved governance, and has facilitated the development of a strategic approach to higher education within a unified policy framework12.

FÁS, the National Training (and Employment - to 2012) Authority, was established in 1988 with a remit for training and re-training; designated apprenticeships; and assistance to community groups. FÁS manages twenty regional training centres and, until 2010, sixty-two Employment Offices (which were transferred in 2011 to form part of the National Employment and Entitlements Service [NEES} of the Department of Social Protection). In 2009 the governance practices of FAS came under public scrutiny, leading to a review by the Comptroller and Auditor General of its internal control and governance. The subsequent report13 found that the governance structure was consistent with its governing legislation and with the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies. However, its failure to fully implement elements of its plan of control exposed it to a risk of losses and of failing to achieve best value for money in its internal operations and in relation to a relatively new programme – the Competency Development Programme14.

From an overall system’s governance point of view, DES considers itself as operating in partnership with school owners and managers15 and carries out regular consultation with a wide range of education and training partners through meetings, fora, conventions. Formal structures such as national committees and boards are in place to facilitate the input of stakeholders, including representatives of education and training managers, teachers/trainers and parents, non-governmental

10 See www.ivea.ie for the Irish Vocational Education Association, the representative body for VECs.11 See www.hea.ie 12 FÁS (2010) A bridge to the future. European policy for vocational education and training 2000 – 2010. National policy report – Ireland. Dublin: FÁS.13 See http://www.audgen.gov.ie/documents/vfmreports/73_Internal__Control_in_FAS1.pdf14 Programme output was not recorded in terms of results such as persons achieving certification and evaluation of the extent to which the training objectives of the programme were achieved. 15 See - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview

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organisations, employers and trade unions. Such bodies include the National Council for Curriculum Development16; FÁS Board of Directors, Expert Group on Future Skills Needs; Further Education and Training Awards Council; Higher Education and Training Awards Council), statutory and ad hoc advisory bodies. Currently, the on-going cut-backs in public funding to the education and training system tend to dominate discussions, debate and, in some cases, public protests among many stakeholders. For many years Social Partnership agreements included agreements on education and training across all the levels, including VET. The collapse of social partnership (after 23 years) in a context of massive economic challenges means that the Social Partners are now employing less formal and less structured ways to influence developments in education and training.

Examinations and Qualifications bodiesVirtually all education and training qualifications in Ireland are situated within a 10-level National Framework of Qualifications, created in 2003.

At post-primary level the statutory State Examination Commission17 (SEC) assumed responsibility for the operation of the State Certificate Examinations from the Department of Education and Skills from 2003 onwards. The Commission deals with the provision and quality of the Irish State Examinations. The organisation works in partnership with education authorities and providers to deliver the centralised national secondary examination and assessment system. The Commission is responsible for the operation of all aspects of the established Leaving Certificate (ISCED 3) and Junior Certificate (ISCED 2) examinations. Apart from occasional challenges, to date the SEC has been held in generally high regard by education and training stakeholders at all levels.

The National Qualifications Authority Ireland (NQAI)18, the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) and the Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) were established in 2001 under the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act, 1999. FETAC’s and HETAC’s main functions are as follows: To make awards, to determine standards for awards and to recognise awards on the National

Framework of Qualifications (NFQ)19

To agree and review providers’ quality assurance arrangements To validate programmes of education and training To ensure fair and consistent assessment of learners by providers To promote its awards To ensure that providers offering its awards implement access, transfer and progression

procedures.

The Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) is the single national awarding body for the non-tertiary (post-secondary) further education and training sector in Ireland and is now responsible for making awards that were previously made by up to 50 different awarding bodies, national and external. To ensure confidence in its awards, FETAC implements a comprehensive strategy involving the coordinated application of three separate functions to assure the quality of the programmes leading to awards. There is great awareness among stakeholders of the crucial need to maintain the integrity of the awards. Therefore, recent questions in relation to the reliability of assessment results in a small number of FÁS sub-contracted training courses leading for FETAC certification has caused widespread concern in the VET community which is alarmed at what has been attributed to ‘light-touch regulation’ on the part of FETAC20. The issue was raised in a

16 See www.ncca.ie; www.forfas.ie; www.fetac.ie; www.hetac.ie 17 See http://www.examinations.ie/index.php?l=en&mc=se&sc=sh18 See www.nqai.ie 19 See http://www.nqai.ie/FanDiagram/nqai_nfq_08.html for interactive fan diagram of NFQ20 Irish Congress of Trade Unions (2011) A New Skills Policy for a New Economy. Dublin: ICTU. http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/ewco/2011/06/IE1106059I.htm

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Committee of the national parliament where it emerged that the matter had been officially investigated by both FÁS and FETAC and that closer monitoring was now in place in both organisations.21.

Quality assurance in VETThe quality of VET in post-primary schools is subject to inspection by the national schools inspectorate of the Department of Education and Skills.

Providers of post-school provision offering FETAC awards are required to have a quality assurance system agreed by FETAC. In addition, FETAC validates programmes submitted by providers, for example, VECs and FAS, whose quality assurance procedures have been agreed. Finally, FETAC monitors and evaluates programmes. If the evaluation indicates it is necessary, then either the validation of the programme or the agreement of the quality assurance procedures may be reviewed.

HETAC is the qualifications awarding body for third-level education and training institutions outside the university sector. Its remit in terms of quality assurance is to: set standards; register institutions; validate programmes; monitor quality; deliver a quality improvement service to registered providers and conduct related system-level research. HETAC is a member of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA). An evaluation of the effectiveness of HETAC was completed in 2006 by an international review panel commissioned by the National Qualifications Authority Ireland (NQAI) HETAC was one of the first agencies in Europe to be reviewed in terms of compliance with the standards and 54 guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area. The process concluded that HETAC has performed its principal statutory functions effectively, and was implementing policies and procedures for each function.

In 2002 the universities established the Irish Universities Quality Board (IUQB)22 so that reviews of the effectiveness of their quality assurance arrangements, for which they have statutory responsibility, could be executed by an external body. This move was in line with European policy which, while stressing institutional ownership of their own quality assurance processes, also requires an external review dimension. Under the Universities Act 1997, the Higher Education Authority also has a statutory function to review and report on quality assurance procedures established by the universities.

Changing structures and roles in VETAt the time of writing a major ‘triple-decker’ root and branch change is underway in the governance, structures and organisation of VET at non-tertiary post-school (further) education and training level and in relation to qualifications structures for VET at non-tertiary further and higher education and trainng levels.

At national level the Government took a significant step to promote greater horizontal and vertical permeability within the Irish VET systems with its announcement of the placement of FÁS under the Department of Education and Skills. This move was designed to foster closer linkages and synergies between all the VET strands, and encourage a closer alignment of VET delivered by the Vocational Education Committees (VECs) the Institutes of Technology and FÁS. Legislation is currently passing through the national parliament to replace FÁS with the policy-advisory, policy-implementation, funding and monitoring body, SOLAS,

SOLAS will have overall responsibility for funding and monitoring the VET hitherto carried out in the FÁS regional training centres and by its sub-contractors. In addition, responsibility will be devolved from DES to SOLAS for funding and monitoring the VET hitherto provided by the 33 VECs at post-

21 Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Skills, 27 January 2011. http://debates.oireachtas.ie/EDJ/2011/01/27/printall.asp22 See http://www.iuqb.ie/en/homepage.aspx

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secondary level and through second-chance adult education and training services. VEC post-primary schools which provide VET at Leaving Certificate level will not come under SOLAS. A consultation process with relevant stakeholders has been initiated on a number of issues and on 27 th March 2012 some 150 stakeholders attended a conference to discuss the roll-out of SOLAS. To date concerns have been expressed about the proposed governance arrangements for SOLAS and its relationship with the forthcoming Education and Training Boards (ETBs) – see below.

A second major change at national level is the proposed amalgamation of the three bodies established under the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act 1999 – National Qualifications Authority Ireland (NQAI), the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) and the Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) - and the Irish Universities Quality Board (IUQB) – into a new single national agency. The Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Bill, 2011 provides for, the Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority of Ireland (QQAI), replacing FETAC, HETAC, NQAI and IUQB. The Authority which will be established in 2012 will undertake the existing functions of NQAI, HETAC and FETAC in relation to the maintenance and development of the National Framework of Qualifications and the awarding of qualifications. The Authority will also have responsibility for the external quality assurance review of the universities – a function currently carried out by the IUQB and the Higher Education Authority. In general this move has been welcomes by stakeholders who believe it will bring synergies, efficiencies and renewed vigour - and rigour - to the qualifications system.

The third major change is taking place at regional and local levels. Legislation is in preparation to aggregate the 33 VECs into 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) which will have responsibility for VET currently provided by the VECs and the regional and local FÁS structures. The training function of FÁS will be absorbed into the ETBs. VEC members, staff and stakeholders and their national representatives have expressed concern at the ‘aggregations’, fearing an erosion of democracy and a loss of the local representation enjoyed by the current VECs. Staff in both the VECs and FAS regional training centres has indicated unease regarding the amalgamation of providers with what is perceived to be very different cultures and practices.

See Annex 8 for a diagrammatic representation of the proposed new governance arrangements.

Q4. Legislative framework

Recent legislation with a direct bearing on the provision of VET in Ireland includes legislation covering VET in / for:

initial (school) education and training the training sector higher education qualifications bodies the Teaching Council the amalgamation of statutory bodies to improve governance.

It is fair to say that the final category of legislation is likely to prove among the most significant in the development of VET in Ireland in recent years - see Annex 3 for a list of legislation.

Q5. Entry to the VET system

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Compared with many countries in Europe the education and training system in Ireland is characterised by a strong academic bias and late vocational choice. This holds true whichever kind of school (secondary, community, comprehensive, vocational, Gaelscoil23) students attend for their secondary education. Learners complete lower secondary education at 15-16 years of age with the Junior Certificate (ISCED 2) examination. Most learners progress to upper secondary (ISCED 3). In 2008-2009, approximately 96% of 16 year olds, 85% of 17 year olds and 65% of pupils aged 18 continued in full-time schooling. It is at entry to upper secondary that a minority of learners (34% in

2011) make a limited vocational choice – what might be termed ‘vocational light’ - by choosing a Leaving Certificate Vocational or a Leaving Certificate Applied pathway. Approximately 80% of the age group completes post-primary education, that is, they take one of the three Leaving Certificate examinations modes24 (see Box 1 above).

The stated goals of LCV and LCA are to strengthen the vocational and technical relevance of the Leaving Certificate overall; to widen choice so as to increase retention and to promote enterprise and work placement. The extent to which these goals are being achieved is questionable as the LCE continues to dominate upper secondary provision in the education system, and in the public consciousness and to have a ‘backwash’ effect on lower secondary provision. This is illustrated by the figures for 2011 when at total of 57,53225 candidates sat the Leaving Certificate examination. The proportions sitting each mode of Leaving Certificate have remained more or less steady in recent years .

Table 2. Participation in Leaving Certificate examination 2011

Leaving Certificate mode Numbers in 2011

%

Leaving Certificate Established 37,955 66

23 Irish is the medium of instruction in the Gaelscoil. 24 See Eurypedia - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview25 State Examinations Commission (2011) Press release. Dublin: SEC.

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Box 1 Leaving Certificate Modes

Leaving Certificate Established (LC or LCE) provides eligibility for direct entry to higher education - minimum of 5 academic subjects from the 34-subject syllabi available;

Leaving Certificate Vocational (LCV) available in two-thirds of post-primary schools which also provides for direct entry to higher education - minimum of 5 subjects from the LCE curriculum, including two subjects from a specified set of vocational subject groupings, a course in a modern European language and three Link Modules comprising compulsory work experience/enterprise activity; personal vocational exploration and substantial use of information technology. LCVP is recognised for direct entry to higher education.

Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) comprises general and vocational subjects as a preparation for work and/or further education and training). LCA gives entry to Post-Leaving Certificate programmes (ISCED 4) but not directly to higher education. This programme aims to prepare students for adult and working life, using a cross-curricular approach rather than a subject –based structure. It has modules in three areas: general education, vocational education and vocational preparation.

Leaving Certificate Vocational 16,386 28.5

Leaving Certificate Applied 3,191 5.5

TOTAL 57,53226 100

Research on teaching practices in Irish post-primary education is scarce, but existing evidence suggests that approaches tend to be teacher‐centred. There is also a concern with an overall lack of learner engagement with mathematics as a subject and the generally narrow examination-oriented approach, especially in the upper secondary phase27. These concerns have implications for the teaching and learning in the VET elements of LCV and LCA.

As the economic downturn takes hold many school leavers are postponing entry into the labour market and continuing in education and training, and redundant workers seek retraining. Almost two-thirds (65%)28 of students who achieve a Leaving Certificate proceed immediately to higher education (LCE or LCV recipients only), up from 20% in 1980. The National Skills Strategy estimates that a higher education entry rate of 72% will be required by 2020 to meet the rising demands for higher-education qualifications in the knowledge society. The binary higher education system comprises universities (ISCED 5A) and Institutes of Technology (ISCED 5A and 5B). The rate of participation in higher education has increased consistently over the past twenty years. A study by the Higher Education Authority (HEA)29 confirms that participation is continuing to increase. Although there has historically been disadvantage by socio-economic background in terms of those who participate in higher education, this study also shows significant progress in the patterns of entry to higher education by socio-economic background.

As part of the overall national skills strategy, the Irish government places strong emphasis on the promotion of science and technology courses in higher education. Participation in such courses had either fallen back, as in the case of technology following the ‘dotcom’ downturn at the beginning of the 00s or had failed to keep pace with industry requirements, e.g.in the bio- and pharma-sciences. The 2007 National Skills Strategy predicted that in future many jobs will require third level qualifications. In order to increase the skills base at higher levels, the Government, under the Strategy for Science, Engineering and Technology Programme, allocated €7.5 billion for school programmes in mathematics and science and for the education of third and fourth level science, engineering and technology graduates, considered essential for the future of the knowledge economy. Significantly, applications for first preference in science and technology for entry to higher education in 2012 have increased by 20% over applications for entry in 2011, a development likely to be mainly attributable to labour market conditions and the general discourse about possible areas of employment in the future.

A further group of 18-year old school leavers, predominantly female, proceeds to non-tertiary further education and training in the Post-leaving Certificate (PLC) programmes30 which are predominantly

26 It should be noted that this number includes a number of adult candidates repeating or doing Leaving Certificate for the first time. It also includes a small number of young people repeating. 27 Smyth, E & McCoy, S. (200?) Improving second-level education: using evidence for policy development. Renewal Series: Paper 5. Dublin: ESRI.28 See Ibid. http://www.oecd.org/document/24/0,3746,en_2649_39263238_43586328_1_1_1_1,00.html 29 HEA (2006) Who went to college in 2004? A National Survey of New Entrants to Higher Education. Dublin: HEA30 See http://www.esri.ie/UserFiles/publications/20060906110550/BKMNINT189.pdf for a review of PLC provision in 2006

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provided by the Vocational Education Committees (VECs). Learners pursue typically one-year courses in a wide range of vocational designations and achieve certification at Level 5 (occasionally 6) on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ – see below). There are 32,688 places on the PLC programme nationally. The aim of these programmes is to provide for a more intensive development of technical skills, including new technologies, combining opportunities for work experience, vocational studies and general studies. Providers must demonstrate a labour market justification for the programmes being proposed. Progression routes are to employment or to higher education through a transfer scheme.

Relatively small numbers of 18-year old school leavers proceed directly from the Leaving Certificate to VET in vocational areas such as designated apprenticeship (FAS and Institutes of Technology), farming (Teagasc), fisheries (BIM) and the hospitality industry (Fáilte Ireland). There they are joining young learners who left school on completion of lower secondary with the Junior Certificate examination. A major element of the further training in Ireland is the apprenticeship system. Apprenticeships are organised by FÁS, in co-operation with employers and unions. Apprentices are required to hold a Junior Certificate, but the majority of apprentices have a Leaving Certificate.. The apprenticeship system is standards-based (it used to be time-served), and typically lasts for four years. It involves seven phases, three off-the-job (totalling 40 weeks in all) and four on-the-job. During on-the-job phases the employer pays an apprentice wage (a percentage of the agreed industry wage rate, agreed by social partners), while during off-the-job phases FÁS pays an allowance (equivalent to that wage) to apprentices. Standards-based apprenticeships are available in a limited number of occupations in traditional craft sectors (construction, electrical, motor, engineering and printing sector2). Apprentices receive a National Craft Certificate (Level 6) on successful completion of the programme.

In fact, the number of people entering apprenticeship in 2010 was 1,204, 22% less than in 2009 and 68% less than in 2008. This reduced level of registrations arose mainly in the construction-related trades, but reductions were also recorded in the electrical and engineering sectors which reflect the lower level of activity across the wider economy. However the registrations in the motor sector showed no decline on the 2009 level. The number of redundant apprentices (mainly owning to the collapse of the construction and related industries) notified to FÁS by employers has increased across all trades. In response FÁS introduced a number of measures to assist redundant apprentices with their on and off-the-job training. Despite the redundancies that have occurred, there is still a significant group of young people continuing apprenticeships commenced in previous years; in all, approximately 11,600 apprentices took part in off-the-job training during 2010. The total number of apprentices across all phases of training was 17,57831 in the same year.

The apprenticeship system in Ireland is considered to have a number of challenges32 including: the relatively high cost of the off-the-job training in the Institutes of Technology – the state pays

the training allowance of apprentices during these stages; the low flexibility of the apprenticeship structure - the entry requirements and duration of

apprenticeships in all occupations are the same and the procedure to create an apprenticeship in a new trade is extremely lengthy and difficult as it requires the agreement of all relevant stakeholders;

an extreme gender imbalance in that the vast majority of apprentices are male.

Sixty-two per cent (62%) of young learners who leave school with a Junior Certificate only or without one progress to some form of education or training after leaving school 33, Over the last few years, there has been an expansion of FÁS programmes paying trainee allowances, to encourage a greater

31 FÁS (2011) Annual Report 201032 Kis, V. (2010) Learning for jobs: Ireland. Paris: OECD.33 Byrne, D. and Smyth, E. (2009) No way back! The dynamics of early school leaving . Dublin: ESRI

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take-up or return to education and training of disadvantaged persons, in particular early school leavers with low qualifications aged between 16-25 years and who are unable to access other FÁS interventions for social, personal or geographical reasons. They may be catered for in a Community Training Workshop funded by FÁS, the National Training Authority or in the Youthreach34 programme which is delivered in partnership between the VECs and FÁS. There were 3452 places in Youthreach Centres nationally in 2010. Youthreach is an integrated programme of education, training and work experience, for young people aged 15-20. Basic skills training, practical work training and general education are features of the programme. FÁS funds 2700 places in Community Training Centres. An additional 1076 places are offered in Senior Traveller Training Centres. Community Training Centres are independent community-based organisations funded by FÁS, and at the cutting edge of youth development.

In general there is a lack of good progression data across much of the VET system. While not a complete ‘data desert’, data are fragmented and a transparent data chain that would allow tracking of individual progress and comparisons and conclusions to be drawn is missing. Due to national budgetary constraints, the ESRI School Leavers Survey which follows up students leaving post-primary education has not taken place since 2007 when it surveyed school leavers who left the second-level education system between September 2004 and August 200535 (published in 2009). In adult learning the idea of an individual learner number similar to that of school-goers has been proposed by some commentators36.

Q6. Young learners

GuidanceGuidance is a universal entitlement in post primary schools as per the Education Act (1998). In the context of Irish post-primary education, guidance refers to a range of learning experiences that assist students to develop self-management skills that will lead to effective choices and decisions about their lives. Guidance encompasses the three separate, but interlinked, areas of personal and social development, educational guidance and career guidance.

All post-primary school provide a guidance service for learners. The focus is on guidance to support: learning and subject choice at the transition point from lower to upper secondary. Subjects and,

indeed, Leaving Certificate mode chosen at this stage will influence the learner’s progression options on completion of upper secondary education. For example, particular subjects such as mathematics, science and/or a foreign language are required or required at higher level for entry into specific higher education courses in the universities and the Institutes of Technology. This is rarely the case for progression to non-tertiary further education and training.

progression to the next level of education or training, on completion of upper secondary, or, in the case of a minority, progression directly to the labour market. A major focus at this stage is the application process for a place in higher education.

In theory guidance is available for the entire duration of the learner’s time in post-primary education. In practice there is a serious imbalance in the provision of guidance services at junior and senior cycle levels and, thus, early school leavers who leave without or on completion of, a Junior Certificate tend to lack contact with guidance services37. The guidance curriculum is arranged locally in the school and will generally consist of group-based information and guidance sessions and one-to-one guidance.

34 See www.youthreach.ie 35 Byrne, D., McCoy, S. & Watson, D. (2009) School Leavers' Survey Report 2007. Dublin: ESRI. 36 Personal experience of the author.37 McCoy, S., Smyth, E., Darmody, M. & Dunne, A. (2006) Guidance Provision in Second-Level Schools. Dublin: Liffey Press

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Post-primary schools are allocated guidance counsellors under a quota system and plans announced in the Government Budget 2012 appear set to force schools to choose between reducing the availability of guidance counsellors to students, removing or reducing the availability of some subjects, or a mix of both. This is likely to prove particularly significant for young people from less advantaged backgrounds who are more reliant on advice from their school in making post‐school decisions and particularly decisions in relation to higher education entry38.

Participants in non-tertiary Post-Leaving Certificate courses in a further education and training college receive in-house education and career guidance on the issue of vocational area choice, progression to work and progression through a special links programme to an Institute of Technology. In all post-school VET it would be fair to say that the demand for guidance services outstrips supply.

For young learners who join the Youthreach programme on leaving school at the age of 16 (or younger) counselling and psychological services are available as well as a guidance service, in recognition of the social and personal challenges experienced by many Youthreach participants. The National Centre for Guidance in Education (NCGE) has a role in the support and development of guidance in YOUTHREACH and similar programmes.

All of the Universities and most of the Institutes of Technology (IoTs) offer a careers service to students. The main provision is targeted at final year students and recent graduates though some career services have started to provide careers education in the curriculum of undergraduate courses. The Careers Advisory/Appointments Office provides information on educational and employment opportunities. Universities and the IoTs are not statutorily required to offer careers services and the provision can differ across the sector. At present many of the Careers Services are involved in programmes promoting student retention in higher education and training.

FAS Employment Services were transferred to the Department of Social Protection in 2011. Before that the services had been assessed as inadequate due to its narrow focus on placement and matching job-seekers and vacancies (for voluntary users and a small number of employers) to the exclusion of counselling, ‘profiling’, activation; brokerage and outreach39.

Significantly, a recent report40 described career guidance services in Ireland as “fragmented and weakly underpinned by information on labour market opportunities””. According to the report, post-primary guidance professionals appeared to use labour market information “less than they ideally should”. The initial professional development of guidance personnel focuses more on psychological aspects. This point is borne out by the public discourse of guidance counsellors’ association in relation to their work which places a much stronger emphasis on their counselling than on their career information role.

Structure of vocational programmesVET in Ireland is centrally co-ordinated and organised as opposed to being social partner or industry driven as is the case in some other European countries. As has been said, the Irish education and training system is characterised by late vocational choice. A limited vocational choice is made at the beginning of upper secondary education (16 / 17 years) when a small percentage of learners opt either to:

38 Irish Examiner December 14, 2011 http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/esri-to-warn-on-school-cuts-177170.html 39 Grubb, D., S. Singh and P. Tergeist (2009) Activation Policies in Ireland, OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Paper No. 75, Paris: OECD.40 Kis, V. op. cit.

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progress to an apprenticeship or a traineeship with FÁS the National Training Authority or another VET course such as Youthreach, a Community Training Workshop or provided under another Government Department

progress to the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) or the Leaving Certificate Vocational (LCV) where they make what might be termed a ‘reversible’ choice in that it can be overturned on progression to higher education, to non-tertiary further education and training or to employment on completion of the Leaving Certificate.

The majority of young people exercise their vocational choice on completion of upper secondary education when they progress to higher education, especially in an Institute of Technology, to non-tertiary further education and training in a Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) course or to an apprenticeship. And even then, a student may opt for a general education course in a university, thus delaying vocational choice until even later. It should be noted that due to strong demand for higher education places not all students get their first choice of course or any course at all.

General learning continues to be a core element of all VET programmes in upper secondary, in non-tertiary further education and training and in the options for early-school leavers. This is a requirement to achieve a major award at Levels 3 – 6 of the National Framework of Qualifications from FETAC (Further Education and Training Awards Council). This is also the case for work placement. The exception is apprenticeships which are highly o apart from apprenticeships which are generally highly occupation-specific. This exclusion of general competences can give rise to difficulties when the apprentice’s literacy and numeracy skills are weak. General learning plays a limited role in VET at higher education level. VET in upper secondary, in non-tertiary further education and training and in the options for early-school leavers is mainly centre-based learning combined with short stints of work simulation and/or work placement.

Assessment and certification of the learning Learning outcomes from the Leaving Certificate VET options are examined on completion of upper secondary in a terminal external examination organised annually by the State Examinations Commission (SEC). The formal assessment of the Links Modules in the LCVP has two components:I) a centrally set written examination taken nationally by all candidates; ii) a portfolio using agreed guidelines. The results for LCA (Leaving Certificate Applied) students differ from those of their other Leaving Certificate counterparts in that successful candidates receive a single award based on credits accumulated over a two year cycle.

VET learning outcomes in further and higher education and training are assessed under arrangements set out, respectively, by FETAC, the Further Education and Training Awards Council and HETAC, the Higher Education and Training Awards Council, respectively. Summative assessment of learning leading to FETAC awards is carried out by the providers/practitioners and is validated by an external validator. FÁS develops assessments through its Curriculum and Assessment Development Units41 in conformity with FETAC award specifications. A FÁS Training Standards System governs the quality assurance aspects of both delivery and assessments. Overall, processes vary from course to course depending on the subject area but will include on-going assessment, formative assessment, summative assessment and use approaches such as practical examination; written examinations; portfolio building etc. It is currently estimated that there are approximately 300,000 learners (young and other learners) in the further education and training sector and that over 100,000 of these are receiving FETAC awards annually42.

41 Eurypedia - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview42 See www.fetac.ie

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Assessment for HETAC awards is carried out by the Institutes of Technology. There has been a strong tradition of end-of-year summative assessments but these are now supplemented by a range of other assessment modes, including continuous assessment by means of assignments, projects, extended essays and action research. With the increasing incidence of modular course provision, assessments are undertaken at end of the module, rather than at year-end, as well as accommodating features of continuous assessment. In the case of the IoTs, a representative(s) of HETAC is present for the institutional board of examiners meetings. There is a strong tendency for heavy assessment in Irish universities, in that most course elements are formally assessed in one form or other. The subject department retains the key academic responsibility for student assessment along with a system of external examiners / verifiers and final appraisal by a board of examiners.

Q7. Other learners

The decade up to 2007 in Ireland was a period of high economic growth which led to a dramatic increase in employment to over two million by 2007. Over that period there was an increase in labour force participation rates and significant inward migration. The focus of labour market policies was on helping fill the recruitment needs of enterprise in a tight labour market with labour shortages43.

Current workersGovernment policy has long been that VET for persons at work is primarily the responsibility of employers, who are the main source of funds for training for the employed, both through their direct funding of in-company training and their financial contributions to the National Training Fund (NTF). During the decade to 2008 additional public resources were devoted to continuing VET for those in employment and FÁS, the National Training Authority, established a number of initiatives in this regard Including: the Competency Development Programme (CDP); the Excellence through People Programme (ETP); and a range of programmes in the public and private sectors in areas such as waste management, road construction and the film industry. In the hospitality sector, Fáilte Ireland operates a national training subsidy scheme to train employees in tourism and hospitality sectors and Enterprise Ireland (a publically-funded body) provides grants towards management development and training in indigenous companies involved in manufacturing and internationally-traded services.

Skillnets, the state-funded, enterprise-led support body for the promotion and facilitation of training and upskilling supports and funds networks of enterprises to provide training for their employees. Skillnets recently included for the first time an element of training for the unemployed with some 4,800 persons trained. A minimum of 10% of participants in their activities must now be unemployed.

The National Training Fund Act, 2000 established a National Training Fund (NTF) to be resourced by a levy on employers of 0.7% of earnings of employees which applies to all the main kinds of employment and covers approximately 75% of all employees. The social partners have a role in the allocation of the NTF. A recent OECD report44 was critical of the contribution of the construction sector to the National Training Fund (NTF) which was considered low in comparison to the benefits accruing through publicly-funded apprenticeship training. In fact, the lack of data on the contributions of each sector to the NTF makes it difficult to assess with certainty the net costs and benefits for each sector in terms of training45. Another criticism of the NTF is that it has been consistently underspent over the years and in 2011 was described as ‘awash with money’46 .

43 Forfás (2010) Review of Labour Market Programmes.44 Kis, V. op. cit.45 Kis, V. op. cit.46 ICTU (2011)

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The current Social Partnership Agreement, Towards 2016, contains specific commitments to increasing the participation of older people in the labour market but the advent of the economic downturn means that the issue appears to have slipped off the active agenda.

Recognition of prior learning (RPL)The potential market for RPL in Ireland is substantial abut a recent report47 found that while good experience of RPL practice has been built up in Ireland, to date it is largely ad hoc or project–based. A co-ordinated approach is required and the report calls for action by a range of stakeholders across the VET sector, including providers, Government departments, guidance professionals, RPL practitioners, adult education organisations and qualifications bodies. Unions and employers have a central role in stimulating demand by communicating its benefits and interacting with RPL providers.

The awarding bodies (NQAI, HETAC, FETAC, Universities) all have RPL policies and procedures in place and there are some good examples of practice. In 2006 Skillnets set up a collaborative Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) forum which included the NQAI, FETAC and two higher education institutions, to support and develop RPL in the workplace. Skillnets continues to encourage its enterprise training networks to use this approach to accrediting learning in the workplace and has set up an internal taskforce to develop expertise in the area. FÁS, in co-operation of the Institutes of Technology, has developed protocols and procedures for RPL for the apprenticeship process, thus facilitating increased access to apprenticeship. Other FÁS initiatives to accredit prior learning have taken place in the retail, construction and childcare sectors.

VET provision for unemployed and other persons Not surprisingly, the downturn in the Irish economy and the consequent restrictions on Government expenditure have curtailed public expenditure on training for the employed and public resources are being redirected to VET for the unemployed. In 2009 the National Competitiveness Council noted that “a balance must now be struck between repositioning the skills of the newly unemployed, with the longer-term objective of up-skilling the entire workforce”48. Since the change of Government in March 2011 Ireland has gone on a ‘war footing’ to, as one Minister has put it, ‘rebuild the country brick by brick’. VET as a recovery measure is a key element of the campaign. The main challenges over the period to 2015 are seen as: raising the skills levels of the labour force and avoiding potential skills mismatch by ensuring that unemployed persons receive training in skills relevant to the needs of enterprises to be able to avail of job opportunities that will arise from replacement needs / start-ups / expansions. The increased attention to VET has led to a sharper focus on the alignment of provision to the skills needs of the economy, on labour market outcomes as opposed the hitherto strong focus on outputs, There is also and increased focus on the evaluation of measures, on tracking data and on value for money. The VET funding model has expanded to include a strand, through the Labour Market Activation Fund, for example, on competitive funding open to all, including private and commercial providers.

In this context, all post-school VET provision, other than for young learners in uninterrupted initial education and training, now tends to be classified under Labour Market Activation Measures. Consequently, areas such as the national Adult Literacy Programme and community-based general adult education for social and personal development are being viewed through a labour market lens and, to a certain extent, being ‘rebranded’ and justified (for public expenditure) on the grounds of laying the foundations for future engagement with VET. This harnessing of ‘everything that moves’ in

47 Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (2011) Developing recognition of prior learning (RPL): the role of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) in the context of the National Skills Strategy upskilling objectives. Dublin: Expert Group on Future Skills Needs. http://www.forfas.ie/publication/search.jsp?ft=/publications/2011/Title,7691,en.php 48 National Competitiveness Council (2009) Statement on Education and Training. Dublin: Forfas. http://www.competitiveness.ie/media/ncc090309_statement_on_education.pdf

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adult learning to economic goals, the knowledge economy and the requirements of the marketplace is being resisted as reductionist and functionalist in some quarters, particularly by adult educators who work out of a commitment to the social, civic and political as well as the economic roles of adult learning. They are also concerned with what they see as the subsuming of the explicit broad social inclusion agenda of the past decade into what they consider the narrower ‘jobs’ agenda.

On the back of the economic boom and the accompanying virtual full employment, Ireland entered the rapidly accelerating economic crisis with weak activation measures. Existing provision was characterised by fragmentation in the availability and quality of services Many programmes for unemployed and disadvantage persons existed in parallel silos with a confusing array of diverse eligibility criteria, funding arrangements, learning opportunities and administrative structures – frequently within the one local provider, regularly within the same building. The National Strategy on Activation is generating a degree of convergence illustrated by new VET governance structures and the integration of employment services and social benefit administration, and the co-ordination of labour market programmes by multi-disciplinary teams.

In response to the economic downturn, the Irish Government has greatly increased funding provision for VET for the unemployed. A key challenge within the VET sector is to prioritise investment in favour of those most at risk in the current recession, in particular to optimise access, participation and outcomes at every level of the VET system, for people with low skills and few or no qualifications, who are particularly vulnerable to both short-term and long-term unemployment. Under the current labour market activation agenda the following priority groups have been identified: the low-skilled; those under 35 years of age; those previously employed in declining sectors (construction, retail and manufacturing) and the long-term unemployed (including individuals on a wide range of social protection payments such as lone parents, prisoners’ partners and persons with a disability)..

FAS, the National Training Authority is providing short, medium and longer-term courses, including foundation courses, for low-skilled individuals; bridging courses; specific skills training; traineeships and local training initiatives. The Local Training Initiative programme is a project-based training and work experience programme run by local community groups. As in 2009, training courses continued in 2010 and 2011 to be delivered in flexible formats including online training and blended learning. In addition, work has been undertaken on the systematic collection of data using the FÁS Management Information System (MIS), to ascertain FÁS services to ‘marginalised’ groups, leading to a more informed understanding of their engagement with FÁS49.

The Vocational Education Committees (VECs) adult further education and training programmes have been expanded through increases in full-time and part-time provision for unemployed persons in the full-time Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) programme and the part-time Back to Education Initiative. The PLC programmes are among the only ones where adult returners and young learners participate side by side and the number of adults now outstrips the young people.

The recession has impacted on people of all educational and skills backgrounds and the higher education sector is supporting redundant workers to reskill / upskill in areas where sustainable employment opportunities may arise as the economy recovers, including ICTs, the green economy; biopharma / chemical industries; the food and beverage sector; international financial services; the medical devices sector; and cross-enterprise skills needs, including international sales skills, specialist business and management skills, and entrepreneurship. The Springboard programme is providing part-time, flexible courses from Levels 6 up for unemployed persons and there is a big increase in the number of ICT-related courses and conversion courses in the Institutes of Technology where transition courses are also being provided for unemployed individuals. It is understood that a

49 FÁS (2011) Annual Report 2010. Dublin: FÁS.

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number of the learning points from the LMAF 2010 evaluation (see below) informed the development of Springboard 2012 - a welcome example of ‘policy learning’ and evidence-based policy making!

Ireland’s National Plan for Equity of Access to Higher Education 2008-2013 establishes a number of benchmarks and actions to increase access by under-represented groups, particularly disadvantaged students, mature students and students with disabilities. The Action Plan also establishes an ambitious target of doubling the annual output of ICT graduates from 1,000 in 2011 to 2,000 by 2018. . A new approach to public funding and provision of VET for unemployed persons was launched in 2010 with the Labour Market Activation Fund (LMAF) which used a competitive funding approach in a public call to tender for the provision of courses for specific target groups including the low-skilled and those formerly employed in declining sectors such as construction, retail and manufacturing services with a particular emphasis on the under 35s and the long-term unemployed.. The LMAF sought market-led activation measures aimed at improving the employability of the target groups through up-skilling and re-skilling and in-built progression pathways. The multi-provider competitive-funding value-for-money driven approach at the heart of the LMAF 2010 caused some disquiet among the ‘traditional’ publicly-funded VET providers. It targeted the submission of proposals on participant-centred activation solutions from third level educational institutions, the VECs, community and voluntary organisations and private sector providers in an effort to maximise the potential for an efficient and value-for-money driven approach to provision50.

Q8. Ensuring VET programmes are up to date

TerminologyHistorically in Ireland and based on the sense of ‘calling’, a ‘vocation’ meant joining a religious order. Now the term is used more to denote dedication and commitment and a sense of service, e.g. in nursing or teaching. ‘Vocational training’ refers to teaching and learning activity closely linked to the labour market and to the transmission and development of skills required by / useful in, the labour market. ‘Vocational education’ refers to teaching and learning with a general education core/component as well as a vocational component. ‘Occupation’ is often used interchangeably with ‘job’ in official documents. but more typically denotes the vocational field in which an individual’s holds his/her competences/qualifications. Thus, an individual may have an occupation but not necessarily a job or s/he may work in a job not related to his/her occupation.

‘Job’ usually means paid (employer-paid or self-paid) employment but is sometimes used to denote unpaid work in the community / voluntary sector. ‘Profession’ is usually used in the sense of ‘regulated profession’ and refers to an occupation with the following characteristics: a specific professional qualification based on a body of theoretical knowledge achieved in higher education; membership of a professional body controlled by the profession and with requirements related to becoming a member (e.g. additional study and practice-based evidence of proficiency); requirements related to retaining membership (e.g. continuing professional development); and collegiality in the sense of belonging to a community of practice.

Ensuring the relevance of vocational programmes – national levelTo ensure the relevance of VET programmes to the local, regional and national skills needs of enterprise, Irish VET stakeholders use a mixture of research, formal consultation and informal feedback. Several structures and measures contribute to this process - see Annex 4 for a list of these.

50 For an overall account of LMAF see PA Consulting (2011) Evaluation of the Labour Market Activation Fund (2010). Dublin: PA.

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The FÁS Skills and Labour Market Research Unit (SLMRU) and the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN) play a key role in the development of labour market and VET ‘intelligence’ in Ireland. EGFSN provides a national research and co-ordination mechanism that includes representatives of the social partners, government departments, industrial development organisations and education and training bodies. The National Skills Strategy51 prepared by EGFSN identified Ireland’s skills profile, provided a strategic vision and specific objectives for Ireland’s future skills requirements, and set out a road map for the development of a knowledge-based, innovation-driven, participative and inclusive economy with a highly skilled workforce by 2020. The key proposals for 2020 mean that over the next eight years an additional 500,000 individuals within the workforce will need to progress by at least one NFQ level over and above their current level of education and training. A report update of March 2010 concluded that significant progress had been made towards meeting the objectives set out in the National Skills Strategy.

A key challenge in ensuring the relevance of vocation programmes is the translation of the VET ‘intelligence’ into actual VET programmes and practice on the ground among VET providers and practitioners. This is one of the challenges that needs to be addressed with urgency by the new body, SOLAS.

Ensuring the relevance of vocational programmes – social partner inputThrough the National Partnership Agreements the social partners, have, to date, played an important role in policy development for VET and under the current agreement, 'Towards 201652, the social partners agree on the need to increase the levels of workplace learning and up-skilling. Employer organisations such as IBEC (Irish Business and Employers’ Confederation), ISME (Irish small and medium-sized enterprises), and the Construction Industry Federation (CIF), all provide either financial or other incentives to promote training practices among their membership.

FÁS consults with Advisory Committees representing sectoral groups such as the engineering, construction and film/TV sectors, and carries out regular reviews of national skills and training needs. As a result of these consultation processes, FÁS has developed and co-funds programmes for specific sectors such as management training for owner-managers in the services sector and a scheme designed to raise standards of safety among construction industry employers. The industry-led Skillnets agency and the Strategic Alliance Programme are examples of co-operative partnerships between the public and private sectors to promote VET within enterprises. At higher education level, the Programme for University Industry Interface forges links between the learning needs of industry and higher education institutions. The Joint Government - Industry ICT Action Plan: Meeting the High Level ICT Skills Needs of Enterprise in Ireland (February 2012 ) and the establishment of the High Level ICT Foresight Group to examine ICT in higher education and the advanced skills needs of the ICT industry in Ireland are a good example of this approach.

A recent report53 lauded FÁS for the use of innovative ways of engaging employers in a bottom-up approach to provision, such as Skillnets. However, the same report pointed out that there were few elements in local democracy in the governance of FAS (e.g. through a regional governing board involving local employers) and that overall stakeholder involvement in the regional governance of FÁS was insufficient. In addition, the recent survey of VEC VET provision called for greater engagement with local employers to identify and service local skills needs. The report recommended systematic engagement with local employers through local networks and organisations54.

51 Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (2007) National Strategy on Future Skills Needs. Dublin: Forfas.52 Department of the Taoiseach (2005) Towards 2016: Social Partnership Agreement. Dublin: D/Taoiseach.53 Kis, V. op. cit.54 Forfás (2012) Guidelines for the alignment of further education programmes with skills needs of enterprise. Dublin: Forfas.

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Curriculum/programme developmentProviding the right mix of skills is a real challenge in the current economic situation. At post-primary school level, the syllabus for VET subjects is set centrally in collaboration between the Department of Education and Skills and the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) through its course boards which have representative of key stakeholders in the areas in question. At the request of the Department of Education and Skills, NCCA could be said to be in ‘permanent review mode’ as the needs of society and the economy accelerate with consequent demands on VET provision in schools. For example, NCCA has been engaged in the review and revision of the Leaving Certificate (upper secondary) examination subjects to ensure: increased focus on the vocational aspects of subjects and the development of a framework for the use of ICT in schools. A major reform is under way through the Project Maths initiative designed to promote better understanding of mathematics, and an increase in the proportion taking the subject at Leaving Certificate higher level.

At further education and training levels providers are free to determine the content of occupational / vocational / professional programmes. Where the programme leads to a qualification on the NFQ it must be validated by the award-making body, viz., FETAC which engages in wide ranging consultations with relevant industry stakeholders through their governing bodies and through course boards. The FETAC process for developing standards - statements of knowledge, skill and competence which are expressed as learning outcomes and communicated by way of award specifications - is participatory and enables the active contribution of relevant stakeholders from industry sectors such as ICT, agriculture, business, tourism, the professions and the public services.

FÁS, in its role as the National Training Authority, develops curricula for all its courses, including for apprenticeship training. FÁS regularly introduces new programmes to respond to new skill needs identified in the labour market; for example for the bio-pharmaceutical industry, sustainable energy and financial. FÁS consults with specialist Advisory Committees, representing the engineering, construction and film/TV sectors, and in co-operation with these sectors carries out regular reviews of national skills and training needs.

In general terms, higher education and training institutions enjoy academic freedom in the design of their curricula. Once courses are established academic departments have the authority to adapt and refine them. Periodically, peer reviews of the work of departments take place as part of quality assurance processes, and course content may be subject to change in the light of outcomes of the review process. Within the IoT sector, a rigorous procedure is also in place, of a different kind, to win approval for new course proposals. As well as gaining the approval of internal institutional bodies, new courses need to satisfy the requirements of the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) and in some circumstances the approval of the Higher Education Authority55 .

Q9. The institutional dimension

The main providers of VET programmes in Ireland are set out in Annex 5.

Pre-service (initial) professional development of teachers and trainersThe pre-service (initial) professional development of school teachers is regulated by the Department of Education and Skills (DES) and the Teaching Council. Post-primary teachers pursue a degree course (or equivalent), at a university or at a relevant third level institution in the subjects that they intend to teach, followed by a one-year course professional course leading to a Postgraduate Diploma in Education. Teachers delivering non-tertiary further education and training provision managed by the VECs, must have authenticated teaching / trainng skills together with a

55 See Eurypedia - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview

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diploma or degree in the theoretical dimension of their subject. In 2010 the Teaching Council developed a proposal for the initial professional development of staff delivering VEC further education and training provision.

There is, however, no similar state regulation of vocational trainers nor is there any requirement for them to have any educational qualifications or pedagogical skills. However trainers who wish to deliver training on FÁS-funded courses must now be registered on the FÁS Register of Trainers. The minimum educational qualification to register as an approved trainer is a Certificate in Training and Development awarded by a recognised awarding body. Recently FÁS decided that it would be beneficial for its own trainers and instructors to have access to formal qualifications in training and development, whether they were providing either initial or continuing vocational training. As a result a series of programmes from Foundation, Certificate to Degree and Master level, were set up in co-operation with higher education.

The Irish Institute of Training and Development (IITD), a professional body with membership mainly drawn for the private sector, develops and monitors standards in the training and development of trainers in Ireland. IITD organises Certificate and Diploma part-time courses in training and development in co-operation with a number of Institutes of Technology. .A Trainers Network which includes regional networks was set up in 2002 to provide a forum for trainers to share experiences in relation to best professional practices, quality standards and continuing professional development. The Network acts as an umbrella organisation for trainers from the public, private and community sectors and in 2009 it proposed a set of core competencies pitched at Level 7 of the NFQ, the equivalent level of a primary degree56 This was in the context of FETAC having assumed an awarding and certification function for the training of trainers at non-tertiary level, for different sectoral areas including FÁS at Level 6 of the NFQ, viz,. a FETAC Special Purpose Award for recognised training of trainer courses

While there is no formal recognised course of training for those who pursue a career as a teacher, i.e. tutor or lecturer in higher education, there are minimum entry requirements in terms of education. There are also opportunities for teachers and lecturers working in third-level education to avail of Government-funded courses to enable them to adapt to new technology and develop their pedagogical and management skills.

Continuing professional development of VET staffThere are no national or sectoral regulations in relation to the continuing professional development (CPD) of VET teachers and trainers. CPD is a management responsibility for the various providers (outside of school authorities). VECs receive funding for CPD for the staff of the various programmes, and it can be assumed that FÁS and other public bodies deliver a range of CPD for their staff.

Overall, there are serious challenges relating to the initial professional development of staff in the VET sector outside of schools. Qualifications requirements vary across the sector or are non-existent. Many in the sector lack pedagogical training or need upskilling. This has a negative impact on effectiveness and reduces the return on public and individual investment. A recent report57

recommends that all VET teachers, trainers and instructors should have some pedagogical training, and as a longer term goal pedagogical training should be offered to supervisors of VET students (e.g. apprentices, trainees) in companies). Furthermore, the report recommends that convergence in qualification requirement for teaching in different sectors of the VET system be encouraged. This is a particularly pertinent recommendation in view of the imminent amalgamation of VEC and FÁS VET provision under SOLAS at national level and the emerging Education and Training Boards at local

56 Trainers Network (2008) Assuring World Class Competencies for Trainers. http://www.trainersnetwork.ie/tnfullrep.pdf 57 Kis, V. op. cit.

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level. Such a move is likely to be assisted by the Teaching Council plan to introduce a new category of VET teacher / trainer, namely ‘tutor’ to facilitate VET staff whose subject may not be taught at primary degree level.

Entry to the institutions providing VETA number of criteria govern entry to VET courses as follows:

Table 3. Criteria governing entry to VET coursesEntry Criteria VET Course Level Requirements

Education level Leaving Certificate

Post-school non-tertiary

Higher Education

Generally requires a Junior Certificate but adult entrants may use work / life experience

Generally requires a Leaving Certificate but adult entrants may use work / life experience

Generally requires a Leaving Certificate but mature entrants may use work / life experience. The Higher Education Links route requires a FETAC Level 5 award

Some courses require a primary degree

Social welfare status

Any level Certain VET programmes are only open to applicants on a social protection payment

Employment status Apprenticeship Apprentices must have a job in their vocational area. Note: see below regarding redundant apprentices

Q10. Workplace learning

In Ireland workplace training is a substantial part of the curriculum in programmes such as apprenticeship, traineeship, specific skills training and some programmes available at the Institutes of Technology. Of these, apprenticeship is by far the largest in terms of the number of participants. However, apprenticeships are available in a limited number of occupations only, mainly traditional trades. In addition, since the beginning of the economic downturn in 2008 the number of redundant apprentices has increased and the number of young learners taking up apprentices has fallen year on year58. To address the plight of redundant apprentices the government established the Employer-based Redundant Apprentices Rotation Scheme to give them the opportunity of completing the on-the-job phase of the apprenticeship in order to progress to the next off-the job phase / complete the apprenticeship59. The wisdom of this scheme has been questioned and an alternative such as shifting the resources involved to more differentiated cost-effective across-the-board measures in support of redundant apprentices has been suggested60.

58 FAS (2011) Annual Report 2010. Dublin: FAS. 59 See http://www.fas.ie/NR/rdonlyres/34CEE49A-5070-495E-AFA5-047A84EA60EE/433/EmployerBasedRedundantApprenticeRotationSchemebroc.pdf 60 Kis, V. op. cit.

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VET programmes in VECs provide only limited work experience. . The Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) programme, the biggest VET programme in terms of participation, combines general education, vocational training and a limited amount of work experience. During a typical one-year course participants typically spend no more than three weeks on workplace training. In many cases the main incentive for workplace training is the FETAC workplace learning requirement for the achievement of a major award at any level. The recent report on the alignment of VEC VET provision with the skills needs of enterprise61 called for ‘much greater availability of workplace learning’’, In addition, a recent OECD report62 called on policy-makers to ‘make extensive use of workplace training in all VET programmes building on the existing types of provision and the experience with apprenticeship’. This recommendation was based on the argument that more extensive use of workplace training would increase efficiency and equity in the system and that broadening VET with workplace training would help address the gender imbalance in participation in workplace training arising from the predominantly male participation in apprenticeship provision.

For the majority of participants in VET programmes securing a work placement is far from systematic. Good local contacts – personal to the learner or between the provider and the employer - are frequently the route to a placement. At the height of the economic boom workplace training offered employers a useful and cost-effective means of recruitment and of screening potential employees. In the current downturn and time of high unemployment employers are less willing to co-operate, citing lack of staff / overstaffing or prior commitment in a situation of high competition for a work placement. Exceptions to this situation are apprenticeships and VET programmes developed in tandem with employers, such as the publicly-funded graduate internship programmes. At a local level, depending on personal contacts and local arrangements, the public sector – e.g. health authorities, care homes, childcare facilities and libraries - may provide workplace learning opportunities on an ad hoc basis.

In terms of the ‘curriculum’ for workplace learning, the FETAC workplace learning module sets out requirements for preparation, in-job learning and reflection, monitoring and assessment. This module and the associated standards have been developed through consultation with trainers and employers. Workplace mentors/coaches tend to self-select or to be nominated by a supervisor. Formal training is rarely provided and, at best, the trainer involved will work with the mentor/coach to agree requirements and procedures. Arrangements in the case of apprenticeships and traineeships are more structured and agreed63. In the case of apprenticeships the employer is required to be or nominate a suitably qualified and relevant craftsperson to act as the workplace assessor with responsibility for training, assessments and on-the-job schedules – see Annex 6 for a FÁS Apprenticeship Code of Practice. The nominated workplace assessor must complete the FÁS Assessor/Verifier Programme. In traineeships, FÁS provides skills coach training for experienced enterprise employees to support the learner during the on-the-job phase.

Workplace learning as part of a FETAC award is assessed through the learner’s reflective portfolio, covering areas such as: description of the workplace; a personal learning plan prioritising goals and identifying knowledge, skills and competence to be improved during placement; learning outcomes; challenges etc. The workplace mentor/contact person is required to make an input to the portfolio on the learner’s performance on a set of criteria. The course trainer involved supervises the overall activity.

Institution-industry links have become much more integral to higher education. Many individual enterprises maintain close links with particular departments and faculties. IoTs have frequently

61 Forfás (2012) Guidelines for the alignment of further education programmes with skill needs of enterprise. Dublin: Forfás. 62 Kis, V. op. cit.63 See www.fas.ie

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developed close links with employer bodies in their regions, leading to some interchange of staff experience as well as workplace learning opportunities for students. Career guidance personnel maintain lines of mutual communication with industry to their mutual benefit. But there is little or no tradition of external employers participating in the assessment of students, although they may form part of accrediting committees and peer review teams64.

Q11. Institution-workplace interface

For the most part, a learning institution’s interface with the workplace tends to be a local institutional issue dependent on the institution’s governance structures and / or contact networks. An exception arises in the case of apprenticeship training and traineeships organised by FÁS which are covered by national agreements between the Department of Education and Skills, FAS, the Institutes of Technology, employer bodies and trade unions. An employer must be registered with FAS before an apprentice can be registered and recognised for a training place. During the on-the-job training phases of apprenticeship the apprentice’s competence is assessed to pre-specified standards by the employer. During off-the-job training, all apprentices are paid an allowance by FÁS and, where appropriate, a contribution towards travel or accommodation costs See Annex 10 for the Apprenticeship Code of Practice which sets out the duties and responsibilities of employers and apprentices.

Q12. Progression pathways

The National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) is a system of ten levels that incorporates awards made for all kinds of learning, wherever it is gained - see Annex 7 for a diagram of the NFQ. The majority of awards made in Ireland by national awarding bodies, from basic literacy awards to doctoral degrees are included in the Framework.  The NFQ is the key to progression within VET and between VET and other education pathways in Ireland, and, indeed, further field. The National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI) has a statutory obligation to uphold the role of the NFQ in the promotion of access, transfer and progression throughout the span of education and training provision. The terms ‘access’, ‘transfer’ and ‘progression’ are explicitly defined in the establishing Act. It is also a function of the NQAI to determine the procedures to be implemented by providers of VET for access, transfer and progression and to ensure that they are implemented. A function of both HETAC and FETAC, as set out in the Act, is to ensure such procedures for access, transfer and progression are implemented by providers. There is also a requirement for providers to inform learners of access, transfer and progression arrangements in advance.

It is, thus, NFQ which makes it possible, in theory at least, for a person with a vocational qualification to progress to a course that will enable him/her to gain a qualification required to become a member of a profession, such as a primary degree. In practice, the person’s progression as described will depend on acceptance on such a course which may present a challenge due to issues such as limited inter-institutional co-operation, structural challenges, competition for higher education places, lack of a system for the recognition of prior learning, and/or the financial investment required.

There are increased levels of transfer and progression within higher education by holders of tertiary level certificate or diploma level awards on to degree level studies. Many institutions have access offices, mature student offices and disability support services with learning support centres, counsellors and career guidance personnel.

64 See Eurypedia - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview

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Progression pathways on completion of entry-level vocationsIn general in Ireland while there is not a sharp distinction between initial and continuing VET, the separation between further non-tertiary and higher education and training has been much clearer and until the establishment of the NFQ there was little progression between the two pathways. A number of initiatives illustrate the changes that are taking place. On successful completion of an apprenticeship a craftsperson is eligible for consideration for entry into related degree programmes provided by the Institutes of Technology providing he/she also meets other special entry requirements65. In 2009 a Framework for the Progression of Craftspersons was launched by a consortium of six Institutes of Technology66 to advise apprentices/craftspersons, employers and higher education of an overall progression route to enable holders of Advanced Certificates – Craft to advance to a Level 7 degree programme and beyond on the NFQ. Background research confirmed that some 94% of apprentices wished to progress to higher education and the framework project facilitated progression for 40 craftspersons to degree programmes in electrical engineering. The main obstacles for craftspersons taking part were: lack of time and financial support; distance from the provider and a failure to have their prior work and learning experiences recognised67.

Another example of a well-structured progression route is the Higher Education Links Scheme (HELS)68 which facilitates progression from mainly VEC Post-Leaving Certificate courses to a variety of higher education courses via specific FETAC Level 5 Certificates and some Advanced Certificates. Currently circa 18% of applicants to higher education hold a FETAC major award. In 2011 some 40 higher education institutions offered a HEL route to Levels 6 – 8 on the NFQ.

Overall, however, little is known about the extent to which the pathways of progression created by the NFQ are used. Also, it is difficult to know whether students succeed in their subsequent programme and existing data do not allow for the identification of tertiary education completion rates of students coming from different programmes. This means that it is not possible to identify which programmes have stronger and which have weaker outcomes. The amalgamation of the existing qualifications agencies in 2012 provides the opportunity for a single agency to drive developments in an area where a ‘whole of education and training’ approach is vital, and where progress has been uneven and work remains to be done.

Q13. Impact

Measuring the success of the VET system in IrelandThe ‘success’ of a VET programme in Ireland is generally defined as the achievement of its objectives69. Whether these objectives contribute to the ‘success’ of the overall VET system - that vital third evaluation question: ‘Did we implement/deliver the right programme(s)?’ – is a question that has not always been posed, at least to date. However, the current pressure on and expectations of, VET as a key economic recovery mechanism mean that funding authorities are asking such questions more systematically and regularly than hitherto. This trend is accelerated by the pressure on VET programmes to contribute to a measurable reduction in unemployment, in economic circumstances where good employment outcomes are elusive.

The research base on VET is weak. Across the public service in recent years, it is acknowledged that

65 See http://www.fetac.ie/fetac/documents/Progression_from_FETAC_Adv_Cert-Craft_to_HE_Courses.pdf 66 See http://eine.ie/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/framework-for-progression-of-craftpersons.pdf 67 FÁS (2010) A bridge to the future. European policy for vocational education and training 2000 – 2010. National policy report – Ireland. Dublin: FÁS. 68 See http://www.fetac.ie/fetac/documents/Prog_HEC_2011.pdf69 In the author’s personal experience

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administrative data are not always sufficient or adequate to inform the implementation of policy or to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions70. Data sources on the impact of the VET system are fragmented and do not permit the tracking of progression across the education and training system. Many of the numerous VET programmes gather progression data but these are not aggregated for an individual provider or pathway, let alone for the VET system as a whole. FÁS training services have not as a whole been subject to an independent evaluation, although some FÁS-funded programmes have been evaluated71. The results of the follow-up of programmes, including placement rates from FÁS programmes, are in the public domain, but it is difficult to draw meaningful conclusions from the data, as response rates are low, potentially distorting the samples72.,

A number of the individual stand-alone research studies/findings merit attention. The 2006 report on the PLC programme73 indicated that some 90% of those who completed a course progressed to additional education and training or directly to employment. A significant proportion progressed to additional education and training: 40 per cent of the males and 38 per cent of the females. Most of these were in full-time education and of these some 78% are in higher education.

2010 marked the 28th edition of the Higher Education Authority graduate survey of graduate destinations nine months after graduation74. The Class of 2008 (surveyed in April 2009) entered one of the toughest economic scenarios since publication began. The portion of surveyed Level 8 Honours Bachelor Degree graduates in employment was 50%, 10% were seeking employment and 34% were in further studies/training. The strongest performers were graduates with a Level 8 Honours Bachelor Degree in Medicine, Dentistry, Para-Medical Studies and Veterinary. Somewhat less than 50% of graduates with Level 8 degrees in Commerce, Business Studies, Science, Food Science, Technology and Engineering were in employment. For most award levels the Non-Market Services was the most popular employment sector. The least populated sectors of employment by graduates at any level were:

Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Electricity, Gas and Water Supply Transport, Storage and Communications Building and Construction Distribution.

The Labour Market Activation Fund (LMAF) 2010 was subjected to a strong analysis in terms of its impact and in terms of the funding model used, although in some cases it was too early to identify progression outcomes for the learners. In particular the evaluation found that there was a foundation for contributing to a new model of labour market activation moving forward to reflect the rapidly evolving social and economic circumstances in Ireland. The evaluation drew attention to the focus on a progression pathway model and an integrated, cross-organisation approach to meeting individual needs.

In summary, therefore, there are limited data to assess whether the public and individual resources invested75 in VET in non-tertiary further education and training are yielding valuable outcomes and value for money. Given the large amount of public resources involved and current constraints on public expenditure, a global evaluation would be desirable. Indeed, numerous recent research and

70 Higher Education Authority (2010) A study of progression in higher education. Dublin: HEA.71 E.g. apprenticeship, traineeship, National Employment Services, FÁS Provision for Members of the Travelling Community, FÁS Provision for Early School Leavers,. 72 Kis, V. op. cit.73 ESRI (2006) PLC, A multivariate analysis Dublin: ESRI74 Higher Education Authority (2010) What do graduates do? The Class of 2008’. Dublin: HEA.

75 See Annex 5 for public expenditure on specific training programmes in 2011.

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other reports76 have called for a more formal and robust approach to on-going monitoring of VET participant progression outcomes based on consistent and sustained recording and reporting post-funding and post-project to ensure that the full value of the public investment can be ascertained. In line with this, the recent evaluation of the LMAF77 - which spanned further and higher VET - recommends that consideration be given to piloting an outcomes-based funding model within any future fund where project providers are rewarded on the basis of meeting specified outcome targets – a performance management ‘payment-by-results’ approach which, brings its own potential challenges and pitfalls but where the benefits may outweigh the disadvantages.

Q14. National support systems for VET

A number of national initiatives support the VET system at national and local levels.

First, the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs and the National Skills Strategy provide vital information and direction on future skills needs for VET policy-makers, providers and practitioners.

Second, in the field of information and guidance, the National Centre for Guidance in Education (NCGE) supports the national / local Adult Education Guidance Initiative established in 2000 to provide educational guidance to identified cohorts of adult learners in VEC programmes. In addition, the newly formed National Employment and Entitlements Service will support individuals to return to structured learning in the VET system.

A number of national databases provide course and career information for potential learners. Qualifax is Ireland’s National Learners’ Database, a “one stop shop" for learners providing information on further and higher education and training courses. Learners can access a number of websites created for career guidance purposes (e.g. Career Directions, Qualifax), but each covers only some elements of the range of VET programmes available. Although the websites contain links to each other, it is more complicated for users to find the relevant information on disparate websites. This is not optimal and a key goal for SOLAS should be the creation of a comprehensive career guidance website. The Further Education Support Service (FESS) was established in 1997 to support further education and training centres offering FETAC Modules and Awards. The Support Service is a full-time, year-round consultancy service operating through five Vocational Education Committees (VECs). FESS currently exclusively supports the Department of Education and Skills-funded centres registered with FETAC. FESS provides continuing professional development (CDP) to VEC staff in relation to FETAC Awards development and the management of assessment.

In recent years there has been an increased demand for tailored and personalised learning provision. Modularised curricula and the FAS eCollege, for example are examples of responses to that trend. In recognition of the demand for learning opportunities from the growing numbers of unemployed persons the eCollege has expanded provision and offers courses at no cost to the individual.

Conclusion

76 Cf. Kis, V. op. cit.; PA Consulting Group (2011) Evaluation of the Labour Market Activation Fund (LMAF) 2010. Dublin: PA - http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/lmaf_report.pdf?language=EN: Forfás (2012) Guidelines for the alignment of further education programmes with skills needs of enterprise. 77 PA Consulting Group, op.cit.

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The 2010 OECD report on learning for job in Ireland78 listed a number of the strengths of the system, including: diverse post-school VET provision by a diverse range of providers; good collaboration with the Social Partners; innovative ways of engaging employers in the provision of VET; a well-structured apprenticeship system and a comprehensive national framework of qualifications covering all kinds and levels of general education and vocational education and training. Of these, the development of the NFQ stands out as one of the most influential developments in education and training in Ireland in decades. The coherence and transparency that the NFQ has brought to the previously fragmented, incoherent and virtually incomprehensible array of qualifications continues to exert a strong positive influence on individuals and the system as a whole. Its true potential in terms of access, transfer and progression has yet to be realised and that will be one of the tasks of SOLAS and the QQAI to 2020. Development of the embryonic RPL system would be a first step in the right direction in this regard.

An examination of VET in upper secondary schooling is essential at this point to determine its strengths and weaknesses. Following on that there needs to be a widespread public debate about the nature of upper secondary and the options and alternatives at the nation’s disposal.

Quality - development and assurance - in VET in the interests of relevance, equity, efficiency and effectiveness have to be another key goal to 2020. Given that staff is a key determinant of quality in VET, a comprehensive review of staff qualifications, the gaps therein and measures to address them might be a good first step to 2020.

Another critical and urgent task ahead is the development of a comprehensive data system to underpin policy and practice in VET. Monitoring methodologies need to be developed so as to establish a data chain based on the principle of ‘collect once, use many times’ and linking all levels from individuals to providers to policy-makers to national and European monitoring bodies.. The amalgamation of the VET services of FÁS and the VECs under SOLAS at national level and the Education and Training Boards at local level should facilitate movement on this goal.

Finally, and immediately, the ‘big bang’ change that is starting to reverberate through the VET system and will intensify throughout 2012 needs to be managed in a way that maximises the opportunities and minimises the threats for as many people as possible.

78 Kis, V. op. cit.

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Annex 1

Labour Market in Ireland

Table 1: Employment: General level (Thousands)

Source: (BA) Labour force survey

Total coverage 1 2 3

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Total 1591.1 1670.7 1716.5 1760.6 1790.1 1834.6 1931.6 2021.1 2112.0 2101.0

Men 947.3 989.9 1013.9 1026.2 1039.3 1065.0 1113.3 1166.7 1204.0 1181.0

Women 643.9 680.8 702.5 734.4 750.9 769.6 818.4 854.5 908.0 921.0

Notes: 1Persons aged 15 years and over. 2Second quarter. 3Excluding Northern and Eastern provinces.

Source: ILO

Table 2: Total employment, by occupation (Thousands)

This table presents absolute figures on the distribution of the employed by occupation, according to ISCO-88 in the period 1999 - 2008

Source: (BA) Labour force survey

ISCO-88 1 2

Total men and women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Total 1591.1

1670.7

1716.5

1760.6

1790.1

1834.6

1931.6

2021.1

2101.6

2108.5

1 Legislators, senior officials and managers

173.5 289.2 293.9 304.1 302.2 321.2 303.2 298.0 310.4 324.0

2 Professionals 240.3 253.5 263.3 288.6 302.3 317.7 325.4 342.9 353.1 359.5

3 Technicians and associate professionals

102.7 90.3 93.9 99.0 110.4 115.2 119.3 121.7 130.7 135.0

4 Clerks 213.7 217.2 224.4 234.6 229.0 230.6 245.8 256.9 265.1 266.0

5 Service workers and shop and market sales workers

224.4 262.2 269.4 272.3 287.3 284.3 312.9 345.8 367.8 383.2

6 Skilled agricultural and fishery workers

121.9 14.9 15.5 14.7 13.4 12.5 13.1 15.7 14.7 15.5

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7 Craft and related trade workers

213.5 224.9 230.5 222.3 239.1 243.7 274.2 290.3 303.0 278.0

8 Plant and machine operators and assemblers

156.8 164.0 175.5 168.0 157.2 143.8 152.7 152.3 155.9 155.6

9 Elementary occupations 136.6 147.0 142.3 149.7 141.9 158.3 178.3 190.9 194.4 184.7

0 Armed forces 7.7 7.6 7.2 7.3 7.3 7.1 6.6 6.6 6.4 6.6

X Not classifiable by occupation

- - 0.5 - - - - - - -

Men 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Total 947.3 989.91013.9

1026.2

1039.3

1065.0

1113.3

1166.7

1201.5

1186.9

1 Legislators, senior officials and managers

115.0 212.4 212.0 221.1 215.5 228.9 210.6 206.3 213.6 220.6

2 Professionals 112.9 122.2 127.2 133.8 143.1 144.3 147.6 156.3 159.6 160.8

3 Technicians and associate professionals

60.1 53.2 54.5 54.0 61.6 66.1 64.7 65.2 67.1 69.7

4 Clerks 57.0 56.4 58.6 60.6 58.1 59.4 65.2 68.6 71.0 66.7

5 Service workers and shop and market sales workers

78.1 92.4 96.7 95.9 97.8 97.0 102.6 115.4 120.7 128.3

6 Skilled agricultural and fishery workers

112.1 13.8 14.2 13.6 11.8 11.4 11.9 14.5 13.4 13.8

7 Craft and related trade workers

197.9 211.0 217.0 211.0 226.7 231.5 262.9 279.1 290.9 267.7

8 Plant and machine operators and assemblers

118.4 124.3 135.7 133.3 126.4 119.5 126.8 129.1 133.6 135.6

9 Elementary occupations 88.4 97.0 90.9 95.9 91.3 100.3 114.7 126.0 125.5 117.5

0 Armed forces 7.4 7.4 7.0 6.9 6.9 6.7 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.0

X Not classifiable by occupation

- - 0.2 - - - - - - -

Women 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Total 643.9 680.8 702.5 734.4 750.9 769.6 818.4 854.5 900.1 921.6

1 Legislators, senior officials and managers

58.6 76.6 81.9 83.0 86.7 92.3 92.6 91.7 96.8 103.3

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2 Professionals 127.4 131.3 136.1 154.8 159.2 173.5 177.8 186.6 193.6 198.8

3 Technicians and associate professionals

42.6 37.1 39.4 45.0 48.7 49.1 54.6 56.4 63.6 65.3

4 Clerks 156.7 160.8 165.8 174.1 171.0 171.2 180.6 188.2 194.1 199.4

5 Service workers and shop and market sales workers

146.3 169.8 172.8 176.4 189.4 187.4 210.4 230.4 247.1 254.9

6 Skilled agricultural and fishery workers

9.7 1.2 1.3 1.0 1.6 1.1 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.7

7 Craft and related trade workers

15.6 13.9 13.4 11.2 12.4 12.3 11.3 11.2 12.1 10.3

8 Plant and machine operators and assemblers

38.5 39.7 39.8 34.7 30.7 24.2 25.8 23.3 22.3 20.0

9 Elementary occupations 48.2 50.0 51.3 53.8 50.6 58.0 63.6 64.9 68.9 67.2

0 Armed forces 0.3 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.3 0.5 0.3 0.6

X Not classifiable by occupation

- - 0.4 - - - - - - -

Notes: 1Persons aged 15 years and over. 2 Second quarter.

Table 3: Persons aged 15 years and over in employment (ILO) classified by sex and NACE Rev. 2 Economic Sector October – December 2011

Economic sector (NACE Rev. 2) '000 '000 '000

Oct. – Dec. 2011

Oct. – Dec. 2011

Oct. – Dec. 2011

Males Females Total persons

A Agriculture, forestry and fishing 71.8 8.6 80.4

B-E Industry 172.7 67.0 239.7

F Construction 100.3 7.2 107.6

G Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles

134.4 127.6 262.0

H Transportation and storage 72.0 19.1 91.1

I Accommodation and food service activities 53.6 59.8 113.4

J Information and communication 51.5 23.1 74.7

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K-L Financial, insurance and real estate activities 45.8 56.4 102.2

M Professional, scientific and technical activities 58.1 35.9 94.0

N Administrative and support service activities 32.1 30.7 62.8

O Public administration and defence; compulsory social security

52.9 50.1 102.9

P Education 37.2 106.1 143.3

Q Human health and social work activities 45.0 193.0 238.0

R-U Other NACE activities 39.5 56.1 95.6

Total 966.9 840.8 1,807.8

Source: Table 2b, Quarterly National Household Survey Quarter 4

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Annex 2 Structure of the national education and training system

36

Adult (aged 16 and over) education & training in: VECs

FÁS

BIM

Fáilte Ireland

Teagasc

Community, commercial & other training centres

Universities

Institutes of Technology

Enterprises

Source: Adapted from Eurypedia - The European Encyclopedia on National Education Systems, https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Ireland:Overview

Annex 3

Legislative Framework for VET in Ireland

In recent years the education and training system has been underpinned by an array of legislation. A period of implementation and consolidation of the legislation has occurred and the system is coming to terms with its practical implications.

Legislation covering VET in initial (school) education and training

The Education Act, 1998 established a legislative framework for education provision in Ireland. It also establishes rights for all to access education, including persons with disabilities. The Education Act names the consultative partners in education.

The Equal Status Act, 2000 is concerned with the provision of goods and services, including education. Discrimination in terms of unequal admission to, participation in and exclusion from, educational institutions is prohibited across nine named grounds viz, gender, family status, marital status, sexual orientation, age, religious belief, ethnicity, membership of the Traveller Community, disability.

The Vocational Education Acts, 1930 legislated for the provision of two categories of vocational education; practical continuation education for young people from age 14 to age 16 and technical education catering for those of age 16+ and particularly for apprentices to skilled trades. Thirty-eight Vocational Education Committees (VECs) were established under the act, each with responsibility for continuation and technical education in its area. VECs were to be appointed by the elected local authorities in the counties, cities and larger towns. It should be noted that with the expansion of the schooling system through the introduction of ‘free education’ at post-primary level (1967) the vocational schools gradually began to offer the mainstream academic curriculum at lower and upper secondary levels with the inclusion of the practical subjects for which they had the staff, workshops and equipment. Over the past two decades vocational schools could be said to have recovered ‘their roots’ to some extent with the development of a wide array of post-secondary non-tertiary VET programmes (Post-Leaving Certificate courses – PLCs) in a wide range of vocational designations for school leavers (18-year olds) and adult returners.

Vocational Education (Amendment) Acts, 1936, 1943, 1944, 1947, 1950, 1953, 1962, 1970 and 2001 amended the principal act of 1930 and subsequent Vocational Education (Amendment) Acts. The focus was principally on the membership, functions and performance of the Vocational Education Committees.

Legislation covering VET in the training sector

The Labour Services Act, 1987 led to the establishment of FÁS, the National Training and Employment Authority in 1988. . The Act sets out the principal functions of the agency. Until its transfer to the Department of Education and Skills in January 2012, FÁS operated under the aegis of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and the role of that Department in overseeing the activities of FÁS is defined in the act.

The Industrial Training (Apprenticeship Levy) Act, 1994 provided for a levy on employers, to be known as Apprenticeship Levy, in sectors of industry to be designated by the Minister for Enterprise and Employment to fund a new apprenticeship scheme to be run by FÁS and to provide for the making of regulations relating to the manner of recruitment of apprentices.

The National Training Fund Act, 2000 established a National Training Fund (NTF) resourced by a levy on employers of 0.7% of earnings of employees. The levy applies to all the main kinds of employment and covers approximately 75% of all employees. The monies collected can be used to

37

fund training schemes and programmes for employees (including apprenticeship training) and for those seeking employment.The NTF represented a significant reform in the way training of people in, and for, employment was funded.

The Labour Services (Amendment) Act, 2009 dealt with the accountability of the Director General to the Committee of Public Accounts and other committees in the national parliament; the disclosure of interests by the members of the FÁS Board and by FÁS staff; protection of persons reporting certain items (a clause for the protection of a ‘whistle-blower’)

Legislation covering VET in higher education

The Regional Technical Colleges Act, 1992 statutorily established Regional Technical Colleges. The principal function was to provide vocational and technical education and training for the economic, technological, scientific, commercial, industrial, social and cultural development of the State. Provision is made for the Colleges to engage in research, consultancy and development work either separately or with other institutions.

The Institutes of Technology Act, 2006 amends the Regional Technical Colleges Acts 1992 to 2001 and other related acts, provides for the designation of the Institutes of Technology (formerly Regional Technical Colleges) as institutes of higher education under the HEA (Higher Education Authority) by amending the HEA Act, 1971. This designation and the amendments to the RTC Acts and the DIT Acts in the Bill mean that, in practice, the HEA and the Institutes would engage and relate in a way that is very similar to the way the HEA and the universities engage.

Legislation for qualifications bodies

The National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI) Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) and Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) were established in 2001 under the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act, 1999. Their establishment was intended to bring greater coherence to qualifications awarded in Ireland and to encourage a greater focus on the diverse needs of learners. Prior to the establishment of the new agencies, there was little shared understanding of how the various awards in the State related to one another.

Legislation covering the Teaching Council

The Teaching Council Act, 2001 established a Teaching Council (the professional body for teachers). The Teaching Council has begun to address the issue of the diverse pre-service education and qualifications of many staff working in the VET sector in further education and training colleges/centres in the VEC sector.

Legislation to amalgamate state bodies and improve governance

The development of legislation to rationalise state bodies (see Section 2) is underway since 2010 and 2012 should see the passing of such legislation in relation to:

The Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority Ireland to replace NQAI,, HETAC and FETAC

Education and Training Boards ETBs) to replace the VECs

SOLAS to replace the FÁS Board and to take over the funding, developing and monitoring of VET in the ETBs which will have responsibility for VET formerly provided by the VEC sector, by FÁS training centres and by sub-contractors formerly engaged by FÁS.

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Annex 4

Measures to ensure the relevance of VET programmes

Several structures and measures contribute to ensuring the relevance of VET programmes in Ireland, including the following:

Social Partnership agreements – the current agreement ‘Towards 2016’ has an extended section on education and training which sets out extensive agreements in relation to education and trainng across an individual’s lifecycle. Social Partnership came to an end in 2010 after 23 years of agreements

Involvement of the social partners at all national and local levels including:

o FÁS Board of Directors

o Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN)

o Skillnets the enterprise-led training network

o National Qualifications Authority Ireland (NQAI)

o Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC)

o Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC)

o Vocational Education Committees (VECs)

o High Level ICT Foresight Group (launched February 2012)

o Solas (to be established in 2012)

Labour market research and guidance carried out / provided by:

o Forfás, the national policy advisory board to Government for enterprise, trade, science, technology and innovation

o Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN) provides advice to Government on skills issues impacting enterprise through:

skills foresight & benchmarking

strategic advice on building skills through education and training

data collection and analysis on demand and supply of skilled labour

o Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI)

o National Economic and Social Forum (NESC)

o FÁS Skills and Labour Market Research Unit (SLMRU)

o OECD (studies on Ireland)

Labour market and VET programme reviews such as:

o Expert Group on Future Skills Needs National Skills Strategy 2007

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o National Skills Database, an electronic database, gathering the skills data collected by FÁS and other public bodies, including the Central Statistics Office

o FÁS Quarterly Labour Market Commentary

o FÁS annual National Skills Bulletins79

o the complementary EGFSN annual report monitoring the skills supply across levels 1-10 of the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) emerging from education and training80

o the recent evaluation of the Labour Market Activation Fund 201081

o Forfás study on the alignment of VET courses in the VECs with the skills needs of enterprises82

o Forfás study to provide guidance to higher education on current and future skills needs of enterprise83

o on-going EGFSN / FÁS reports on sectoral skills needs, e.g. the bio-pharma-chemical; green economy; ICT; engineering; digital media; financial; life sciences; languages; innovation/creativity; management; healthcare; food & beverages; wholesale & retail84.

79 See www.fas.ie 80 Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (2011) Monitoring Ireland’s skills supply 2011 - Trends in education and training outputs. Dublin: Forfás. http://www.forfas.ie/publication/search.jsp?ft=/publications/2011/Title,8225,en.php 81 PA Consulting Group (2011) Evaluation of the Labour Market Activation Fund (LMAF) 2011. Dublin: PA.82 Forfás (2012) Guidelines for the alignment of further education programmes with skills needs of enterprise. Dublin: Forfás. Not yet on website83 Forfas (2012) Guidance for higher education providers on current and future skills needs of enterprise. Dublin: Forfás. http://www.forfas.ie/publication/search.jsp?ft=/publications/2012/title,9004,en.php 84 See www.skillsireland.ie

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Annex 5

Main Providers of VET in Ireland

Provider Governing structure

VET Provision Curriculum Development

Post-primary schools

Department of Education and Skills (DES)

National curricula for VET at upper secondary level at Levels 4 and 5 of the National Qualifications Framework (NFQ)

Developed nationally in a collaboration between DES and the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment

Vocational Education Committee (VEC) colleges and centres

Department of Education and Skills and the relevant VEC

Full-time & part-time vocational education and training in a wide range of vocational designations at NQF LevelsPost-leaving certificate (PLC) - Levels 5/6Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS) - Levels 5/ 6Back to Education Initiative (BTEI) - Levels 3 - 6Youthreach - Levels 3 – 5Adult literacy - Levels 1 - 3 which can serve as a foundation for vocational trainingCommunity education - mainly general education for civic & social purposes which may serve as a foundation for VET

Curricula for all FETAC award-bearing courses must be validated by FETAC

FÁS Regional Training Centres

Department of Education and Skills and the FAS Board

Full-time & part-time vocational training in a wide range of vocational designations - NFQ Levels 3 – 6 for mainly unemployed individuals

Curricula for all FETAC award-bearing courses must be validated by FETAC

Skillsnets Training Network

Employer-led networks supported by FÁS

Part-time vocational training in a wide range of occupational areas. predominantly for employees

Curricula for all FETAC award-bearing courses must be validated by FETAC

Community and commercial providers sub-contracted by FÁS

Independent governing structures but obliged to be registered with FÁS when providing FÁS-funded courses

Full-time & part-time vocational training in a wide range of vocational designations - NFQ Levels 3 – 6

Curricula for all FETAC award-bearing courses must be validated by FETAC – through FÁS in these cases

Training centres attached to other public providers such as:TeagascBIM

Fáilte Ireland

Department of Agriculture, Food & the MarineDepartment of Transport, Tourism & Sport

Full-time & part-time agriculture, horticulture, fisheries training at NFQ Levels 5 - 7Training for the hospitality industry at NFQ Levels 5 - 7

Curricula for all FETAC & HETAC award-bearing courses must be validated by the awarding bodies

Institutes of Technology

Higher Education Authority, an agency of DES

A wide range of vocational training in a wide range of vocational designations at NFQ

Curricula for all HETAC award-bearing courses must be validated by

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Levels 7 – 10 including the off-the-job phases of apprenticeships

HETAC, internal institutional bodies &, in some cases, the Higher Education Authority

Universities Higher Education Authority, an agency of DES

Mainly academic courses but some vocational training – NFQ Levels 7 – 10

Curricula are designed by academic departments with oversight from faculties

Community providers

Independent governing structures

Mainly general education for civic & social purposes which may serve as a foundation for vocational training

Curricula are designed by the providers and practitioners

Commercial providers and professional bodies

Independent governing structures

A range of vocational and professional training in a wide range of vocational areas at NFQ Levels 5 – 9

Curricula for award-bearing courses must be validated by the awarding body, e.g. FETAC, HETAC or a professional body

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Annex 6

APPRENTICESHIP CODE OF PRACTICE

Introduction This Code of Practice is intended to assist both employers and apprentices to understand their duties and responsibilities relating to the apprenticeship programme. Apprentices (and, if they are under 18, their parents or guardians) and employers must accept this Code of Practice as part of the employer approval and apprentice registration processes.

Objective of Apprenticeship The objective of the apprenticeship programme is to provide apprentices with the required knowledge, skills and competence to perform as a craftsperson. The programme is a statutory standards based training and educational programme for registered apprentices, which is developed in conjunction with the relevant social partners and regulatory bodies. Apprenticeship Programme The apprenticeship programme is complete when an apprentice has successfully achieved the required qualifying standard, completed all of the alternating on-the-job and off-the-job phases of his/her apprenticeship, and served the minimum apprenticeship period as specified by FÁS from time to time. Temporary Cessation of the Apprenticeship Programme Any period of time spent on temporary lay-off (as per the redundancy legislation), maternity, adoptive or parental leave, carer’s leave or any other period of protective leave, sick leave (in excess of 6 weeks in any 12 month period) or any unauthorised absence will not count towards completion of the apprenticeship programme. During such absence the apprenticeship programme will be ceased temporarily. FÁS retains the discretion to temporarily cease apprenticeships in instances of frequent intermittent absences and/or absences of less than 6 weeks’ duration.

Employment Entitlements Throughout the apprenticeship programme the apprentice remains an employee of the employer. This includes any time the apprentice is attending an off-the-job training phase. Employee statutory holiday entitlements continue to accrue during the off-the-job phases, but must be taken during the on-the-job phases at times agreed with the employer.

Employer Obligations Employers must comply with the statutory obligations imposed by the Industrial Training Act, 1967 (as amended), the Labour Services Acts 1987-2009 (as amended from time to time)

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and any Apprenticeship Rules (which may apply from time to time) in relation to apprenticeship. Employers are required to: 1) Notify FÁS within two weeks of the apprentice commencing employment and ensure that the apprentice meets the minimum entry requirements specified by FÁS. Within two weeks of the apprentice commencing employment the employer must submit an application for the registration of the apprentice with FÁS. The date of registration is the official start date of the apprenticeship. It is not permissible to assign the apprentice to a sub-contractor of the employer.

2) Be familiar with and commit to implement, the approved apprentice curriculum appropriate to the trade provided by the FÁS Training Adviser.

3) Ensure that the apprentice is released to attend the Phase 1 induction presentation.

4) Be willing and able to train the apprentice in the required on-the-job aspects of apprenticeship and to ensure that the apprentice has access to the full range of work specified in the FÁS Workplace Assessment Book (which will be provided by the FÁS Training Adviser on commencement of the apprenticeship) for the on-the-job phases of the apprenticeship.

5) Provide access for the apprentice to the appropriate equipment and necessary tools to facilitate the required number of assessments for the on-the-job phases of the apprenticeship. If this is not possible at the time, the employer must arrange, in consultation with its assigned FÁS Training Adviser, to have the apprentice trained with another FÁS approved employer for that particular curriculum item.

6) Provide the apprentice with the opportunities to practice curriculum elements under supervised conditions while having regard to the apprentice’s skill level at the time the task is being undertaken.

7) Employ a suitably qualified and relevant craftsperson who has been approved by FÁS to act as the workplace assessor with responsibility for training, marking assessments, recording and processing assessment checklists and on-the-job schedules as specified in the FÁS Workplace Assessment Book for the on-the-job phases of the apprenticeship. Ensure that the nominated workplace assessor has completed the FÁS Assessor/Verifier Programme.

8) Ensure all on-the-job assessments are conducted in a fair and consistent manner and in accordance with the FÁS Workplace Assessment Specification contained in the FÁS Workplace Assessment Book.

9) Submit all on-the-job training assessment results to the assigned FÁS Training Adviser (on schedule) when the apprentice has reached the minimum qualifying standard.

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10) Release the apprentice for the off-the-job training phases on the dates and to the location specified by FÁS as required by Section 32 of the Industrial Training Act, 1967 as amended. Communicate, co-operate with and support the specified off-the-job training provider (FÁS Training Centre, Institute of Technology or Approved College of Further Education as applicable).

11) Ensure on-the-job training assessment records are maintained for each apprentice and retained for a period of seven years from the end of the apprenticeship and that FÁS personnel have access to these records when required.

12) Afford every assistance and co-operation to FÁS officials in the monitoring of the apprenticeship programme, including granting access when required to copies of all documentation forming part of the programme and to the place of work.

13) Regularly communicate with the apprentice and his/her workplace assessor on an on-going basis to monitor how the apprentice is progressing.

14) Be pro-active in reviewing the apprentice’s progress and provide support, advice and encouragement to the apprentice throughout the apprenticeship.

15) Furnish a report to FÁS on the apprentice’s training programme/progress (if requested) and make appropriate recommendations to FÁS, in particular where an assessment appeal has been requested by the apprentice.

16) Ensure that the apprentice receives training and information on the requirements of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and any regulations and codes of practice made thereunder.

17) Contact the FÁS Training Adviser at least two weeks prior to the introduction of any short time working arrangements for apprentices. Any short time working arrangements for apprentices must be approved in advance by FÁS. If an apprentice is on short time, the employer is required to submit a copy of the OWT 1 Form(s) or the equivalent with the FÁS Assessment Schedule when the phase is completed.

18) Contact the FÁS Training Adviser prior to terminating the employment contract with an apprentice (for any reason including redundancy). Employers must also take all reasonable steps to have their obligations under the contract of apprenticeship transferred to another employer in the case of redundancies. Employers are not permitted to register new

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apprentices with FÁS unless the employer has first offered the role to any of its FÁS apprentices made redundant by the employer within the past 12 months.

19) Contact the FÁS Training Adviser within 2 weeks of the following occurrences:- ( i ) placing an apprentice on temporary lay-off; ( ii ) an apprentice going on maternity, adoptive, carer’s or parental leave or other period of statutory protection leave; ( iii ) an apprentice being on sick leave for more than 6 weeks (in a 12 month period)

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Annex 7

National Framework of Qualifications

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Awarding Bodies

Levels 1 – 6 FETAC Further Education and Trainng Awards Council

Levels 3 – 5 State Examinations Commission

Levels 6 – 10 HETAC Higher Education and Trainng Awards Council

Levels 6 – 10 Dublin Institute of Technology

Levels 7 –10 Universities

www.nfq.ie

Annex 8

Proposed Governance in the VET System by end of 2012

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16 Education and Training Boards

Department of Education and Skills

Higher Education Authority (HEA)

Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority Ireland (QQAI)

SOLAS State Examinations Commission (SEC)

Universities Institutes of Technology

VET Colleges and Centres

Post –primary schools

with VET in upper secondary

Vocatio-nalSchools